Stray's Gambit
by Stray23
Summary: Don't own crap from DC. When Tim Drake, now known as Stray, is contacted to assist Amanda Waller's Suicide Squad and JLA, he discovers what it's like to work with a government funded group and the perks/annoyances that come along with it, but he also discovers a bit of mystery in the form of unspoken feelings. (New 52ish, Tim as Stray/Catlad. Possible TimxCourtney/StrayxStar Girl.
1. Strange Beginning

Stray sat patiently in his cell in Arkham, ignoring the guards and cameras that would routinely turn and look at him with suspicion, smirking to himself as he acknowledged the looks with an occasional stretch. A few minutes later and still nothing. He sighed to himself as he began to lightly tap his right foot for a moment, only to stop and rest his elbows on his legs and lean forward, looking around every few moments out of boredom.

Flashback: Tim had just returned from _misappropriating_ the famed Philosopher's Stone from the vault of one of Gotham's elite. His fence Gwen told him that had finally gotten confirmation of its existance, so as soon as he knew where, Tim suited up and made his way there. He felt that the stone belonged in a museum to be studied and appreciated by the public. After dropping it off at Gotham University's museum of history, he made his way back to his penthouse to bask in his glory and relax for a bit. He got busy making himself a simple lunch when the telephone rang. He set the items down and stared at the phone for a moment as he raised an eyebrow.

'Strange. Doesn't the reception desk usually ask before letting calls through?' he thought to himself for a moment before picking up.

"Mr. Drake," the person on the end of the line said quickly. "I need you to do us a favor."

Tim stood there and thought about this for a minute before the light bulb went off in his head: Amanda Waller. Tim had read about her when going through Batman's files a while back, but never once thought that he would end up speaking to her. He was suspicious of her asking him for help, seeing as to how she had her own 'team' of individuals at her disposal.

"It's about Quinn isn't it?" He asked with a smirk as he sat down on the couch. Harley Quinn had been working with the Suicide Squad for a few months before the Joker disappeared, and once that bit of news had reached her ears, she was back in Gotham before Waller could tell her to stay put; at least that's how he figured it went.

"Part of it," Waller stated as he was running through his thoughts. "She's jeopardizing our security and is causing more headaches than she's worth; however, we also need you to spring Catwoman from Arkham as well, and I'm sure I don't need to inform you on the repercussions of saying no," she said with a final note of finality as she waited for his response. He was irritated to say the least, but he couldn't say no.

"I'm doing this for Catwoman," he stated with a growl.

After hanging up (or more accurately, slamming his phone back into its holder) he decided the best way to reach his first objective was to make his way down to the GCPD and pretend to steal data from the National Criminal Database. Getting in was easy since the vents were never checked. His time as Robin had educated him on how to sneak through the ventilation system quickly and without making a sound, so he wasn't really concerned about being caught too early. Knowing that making his way to the server room was tricky, especially since some of the cops were on a routine patrol, Stray decided to move through the halls of the GCPD in a quick manner, silently taking out a few guards as he went along. Once there, he placed a PWN box into a spot on the hard-drive and then decided to make his presence known by activating the alarm. He leaned smugly against the drive and once the officers made their way to the server room, he quickly stood in front of his PWN box and pulled it out, then slipped it into a pouch before the officers turned to look in his direction and aimed their guns at them.

"Guess I'm caught," he said with a smirk as he put his hands in the air and got down on his knees.

The trip to Arkham had gone differently than he had anticipated, especially since Commissioner Gordon was his escort. When Gordon told his officers to stand down and let him handle their intruder, even Tim was shocked. Sure Gordon was a smart man and sure he probably had some clue as to Tim's former life as Robin, but he wasn't sure what to make of this. Instead of making small talk (like he had hoped for but knew wouldn't) Gordon started hounding him with questions:

"Who are you?, "Why did you break into the GCPD?, "What's your relationship with Catwoman?", the basic questions he had expected, but one question caught him off guard.

"Why did you hop the fence kid?" Gordon asked as he drove along the streets towards Arkham.

'Dammit,' he thought to himself at the time as he turned away. "I was... Fired," he answered quickly.

At that, Commissioner Gordon, who had been keeping his attention soley on the road turned towards the costumed young man and stared at him momentarily as he raised an eyebrow. Sure he only worked with the Batfamily here and there, but he couldn't help but wonder why a member would be "fired," if they were as good as this one was. Now Gordan was a smart man, so he knew that Stray was probably here on a mission, mabye for Batman, maybe for someone else, but there was no way someone with his amount of talent would let himself be captured.

Tim let out a sigh of relief as they made it to the asylum since he could see that Gordan was about to unload more questions on him. Once the car was parked and he was escorted inside, it was the waiting game. His PWN box had actually been downloading information and schematics on the Asylum, as well as some of Waller's selected inmates: Harley Quinn and Catwoman. When he got the signal from an inside man, he would have to work quickly to spring them without setting off any alarms and execute the final stage in Gotham before heading off to the nation's capitol.


	2. Breaking & Exiting

Still sitting in his cell, Tim's patience became dangerously thin due to the radio silence, which had now lasted three days. Aside from the trip to the psychiatrist like every other inmate and the free meals which he barely touched (since he couldn't bring himself to trust the cooks at this asylum) he kept himself entertained by messing with the zipper on his catsuit and by checking through the pouches. He was clad in his suit, a single, thick piece of leather-like material that he and Selina had _misappropriated_ from Wayne Tech. It was extremely tight, and opened with a single zipper up his chest that went from his throat, though he never zipped it up that far, all the way down to his pelvis area, which had taken some getting used to. The flexibility of this was far better than any other costume he had donned. As far as protection went, Selina's only comment had been,

"Try to avoid bullets." A little more research on his part had told him that the fabric was tensile, but reinforced. It could stop glancing shots, and even some calibers when fired straight for the wearer, but wasn't as conducive to armour as it was to agility, and wouldn't help so much with the repercussions of bullets. Broken ribs were to be watched out for. It was woven in a way that made it very difficult, but not impossible to cut.

His whip was hung on his utility belt, surprisingly easy to use, even more so after he got used to it. His goggles were pulled down, orange lenses shielding his eyes. After running through all the information regarding his suit through his mind again, he sighed as he stood up and walked over to the door and rested his forehead against the barred door, wondering why Gordon hadn't had all his gear removed. 'Odd,' he thought to himself as he walked back and sat down cross-legged against the back wall, still waiting on this supposed alert from this insider man he had yet to even be made aware of. He was beginning to think that he was set up when he felt a small vibration coming from one of the pouches on his suit. He fumbled around for a minute before he pulled out his old comm. device and slid it carefully under his cap, placing it into his ear and clicking it before taking his hand out and standing up. "I'm here," he whispered as he walked around a bit.

"Good," came the reply from one Amanda Waller, "because in thirty (30) seconds after this message, our man will place a looped feed of your cell into the security system and unlock your door. From there, you know the rest and I'm sure I don't need to remind you about the success of this mission Mr. Drake," she told him with a commanding tone.

"Got it, and yes I know the importance of this job you're sending me on, but do me a favor and stop calling me Mr. Drake. I'm not a tool for the government or you," he informed with bitterness in his voice before cutting off his comm. "The things I do for people," he muttered to himself as the door clicked open. He breathed a sigh of relief as he carefully poked his head out into the hallway. Empty, but the chances of worker coming by on a routine check were high since this was the mother of all madhouses. Deciding that he had to move quickly, he pulled the goggles down over his eyes and took off down the hall, stopping immediately at the corner and pulling out a smoke pellet just in case. His thief vision, though not as impressive as his detective vision from his days as Robin, did its job by showing that there were no guards in the area. He then moved into a crouched position and moved down the corridor before reaching a large double door. Tim quickly opened up the left door and moved into the room, smiling softly as he stood up and noticed the sign on the wall that indicated to the main security room. 'Idiots,' he chuckled to himself mentally as he quietly ran down to the end of the room and quietly moved through the next door, then walked up a ramp and turned the corner and ascended a flight of stairs to come into the main security room. He placed his left hand on his hip as his right hand tucked the smoke pellet back into its pouch while he shook his head. The only thing blocking his access to the computer was a sole guard who was busy reading his porn magazine and drinking his coffee. Stray strolled over to the man casually before clearing his throat while pinching a nerve in the back of his neck to knock him unconscious. "You really should read the officer's manual," he deadpanned as he sat down in the chair and got to work with his 'mission'. He punched in a few commands on the keyboard and within a few seconds found what he was looking for. Two cellblocks showed up on two of the screens in front of him: one was Harley's cell and the other was Catwoman's. He reached into the side pocket on his utility belt and pulled out his PWN box, then placed it into a slot on the massive modem to his left, then pressed the button and moved back in front of the screens and clicking his second comm. device and contacting Selina. "Hey mom, I think you know why I'm here and I think you know whose cell is to your left. Once you hear the click, wait a minute, then grab Harley and meet me in the courtyard. Tell her someone is taking her to the Joker if you have to," he stated as he punched in some commands and unlocked their doors.

"Will do Kitten," she said with a smile while looking up at the camera and blowing a kiss. Once her door was open, she did as needed and moved swiftly into Harley's cell and grabbed her hand, then led her down the hallway and stopped at the corner when she noticed a small group of guards. "Uh, Kitten…"

"Don't worry," he responded before letting out a soft chuckle and typing in a code to open up all the cell doors, allowing the less dangerous inmates to run free and distract the guards. "I'd be careful though if I were you," he finished as he quickly stood up, grabbed his PWN box, stuck it back into the pocket in his belt and took off for the courtyard.

A few of the inmates here and there around the asylum heard the clicks and walked up to the doors to look around, only to find that the doors were no longer holding them back. As a guard was walking down the hall, some of the inmates lunged out and attacked, but not before, he could get the call out.," Warning!" He called out in worry and surprise. "We've got a possible Code 10! Repeat, possible Code 10, some of the inmates have escaped their cells. Contain them, and somebody check the security mainframe," he ordered as he and several other guards who had just shown up to help contain the escapees. Selina and Harley made their way through the mass of confusion to the courtyard, where Harley spotted Stray and caught his attention with random and excited waving. He nodded and looked up when the sound of a helicopter became present and a rope ladder dropped down. Harley and Selina made their way up, kicking off a few inmates who hoped to escape as well, before Tim made his way over and jumped up, skipping a few rungs as the helicopter ascended into the air and away from the asylum where the guards still had their hands full. Tim climbed in and closed the door behind him before clicking his comm. device and sitting down across from the two women. "Stage 2 was a success. We're making our way to HQ," he said as he watched the co-pilot knock Harley out with an anesthesia mask before she could complain. He sighed and looked out the window and wondered to himself, 'What have I gotten myself into.'


	3. Trial Run

Tim walked down the halls of the underground bunker used as the official JLA headquarters. The meeting with Waller took longer than expected, partially because Harley Quinn had to once again be restrained, but also because he was put on notice.

"Should it be decided that your skills are needed, be prepared to undertake a task with a member or members from the JLA," she stated bluntly.

She didn't give him a chance to voice his disapproval, she gave an implication as to what her intentions were and left it at that before walking out.

'Looks like Batman was right. The nerve of that woman,' Tim thought to himself as he turned the corner only to bump into one Col. Steve Trevor.

"Sorry there Cat... Who?" He looked at Tim from head to toe for a moment before slowly raising an eyebrow.

Tim sighed in annoyance since he already had an idea of what was coming. He shook his head a bit before raising a finger to keep the man silent.

"Before you find that joke in your head and verbalize it, don't. It's been done, and yes, I'm obviously not Catwoman, I'm Stray, sort of like an adopted son. Hello; good-bye."

With that, Tim quickly gave a nod before marching past Steve and towards what he hoped would be an empty part of the base.

Elsewhere:

"So let me see if I've got this right, if I help you with a few tasks here and there, you'll lead me to whoever it is that's been using my name? Sounds a bit too straightforward, but I suppose it'll work," Selina said with a small smirk.

She couldn't help but think of Tim at this moment and how he had been adamant on her declining whatever offer Waller had prepared.

"She's not to be trusted," he had warned with a stern voice.

Selina simply shook her head before standing up and shaking Waller's hand.

"Glad to hear it, I'm sure the Justice League of America will benefit from your services... Both yours, and his," she finished smugly.

Selina was of course prepared for this, because Tim was prepared for this. He had assumed that Waller wouldn't let him off the hook so easily, and he was right.

Selina took a quick breath before smiling softly. "I'm sure they will. Kitten is a very capable person," she informed proudly before walking out to have a look around.

Tim sighed to himself as he walked into the gym and over to a sparing ring. Memories of his days as Robin flashed into his mind and caused him to smile momentarily as he remembered watching Dick and Babs spar.

"Good times," he muttered under his breath before turning to leave.

His casual movements turned into instinctual defense movements when he felt someone else watching him.

He chuckled softly when he caught sight of his viewer and relaxed a bit. "Can I help you?"

Stargirl stood in the doorway and looked at him for a moment out of curiosity before she caught a glimpse of his face and muscular features. Tim resisted the urge to clear his throat as Stargirl looked him up and down without a single hint of deduction involved. She was checking him out, but even more so, she wasn't trying to hide it at all.

"Who are you supposed to be?" She asked as she walked over to him.

Tim cleared his throat a bit before taking a small bow. "Stray's the name and stealing's my game. And you?"

"Cute," she started, "I'm... Stargirl, and if you're really a thief, then why are you here?"

"Waller feels that more pawns will aid her with national dominance in the superhero biz, so here I am, and Catwoman isn't far behind."

Stargirl's look went from curious to anger when Tim finished.

"I know being labeled a pawn doesn't sit well with you, but Waller has her own agenda. You should know that at least."

She simply nodded and continued to stare at him, this time with deduction involved. Even though she wasn't a detective, she could tell (or at least she felt) that he was trustworthy, even if he was a thief, and that he was smarter then most people, even though she could pretty much guarantee that they were the same age.

"I guess you're right... Tim," she responded with a smirk as she folded her arms across her chest.

Tim's eyes widened for a moment at that.

'D-did she...? Waller,' he thought to himself somewhat angrily. 'I shouldn't have put it past her, so no doubt that Trevor, and everyone else on the JLA knows.'

"Nice, but when I'm in my suit, it's Stray Courtney," he shot back with a hint of challenge in his voice.

They both balled their hands into fists as they began to size each other up and stare intently at the other.

Before the situation could progress any further, Courtney got a call on her comm link. "Stargirl, report to my office, and bring the Cat-lad with you," Waller's firm voice ordered before cutting off.

They both relaxed a bit before turning to head for Amanda Waller's office. The walk there, although only a few minutes, seemed longer than that as both teens kept staring at each other, only to instantly look away when the other one noticed. Once there, they stood by as Waller handed Tim a comm device.

"Nothing major, just a bank robbery, but there's at least a dozen gunmen. Should be easy enough for the two of you, especially since one of you has been trained extensively for such things and more. You're ride is in the hangar, now go," she finished before picking up a phone to make another call.

Stray and Stargirl walked out of the office and towards the hangar, but Stargirl was curious as to what Waller was referring to.

"I used to work with Batman," Tim informed when he noticed Courtney's body movements. "Seems like an eternity really."

"Soo... Waller called you in because you're like a younger Batman then right? If she can't have him on her side, someone with just as much talent and half the age will work too right?" She asked a bit quickly as they found their mode of transportation.

"Something like that," he replied as he got in and looked at the controls. "Have you been certified in a Javelin?"

She shook her head and shrugged a bit.

"Fair enough," he mused as they sat down and strapped in before preparing to take off.

Once everything was set, Courtney pressed the button to open the hangar doors before Tim started the engine and took off into the sky. Both felt a bit uncomfortable after a few moments of silence and waited for the other to say something.

"Sorry," Tim finally said to break the silence.

"What for?" She asked as she raised an eyebrow beneath her mask.

"Earlier," he informed.

"Oh. Well, me too," she said in a soft voice. "You're... Kind of quiet too."

"Habit, but we're almost there," he informed as he flipped a switch to activate the vehicle's camouflage mode before landing.

They quickly made their way out to assess the situation before making their move. Once Tim had used his goggles to get a general view of the inside, he turned to Courtney and nodded.

"Twelve goons, eight armed, and five hostages. This is gonna be easy," he informed before grabbing her hand and leading her in from a side vent.

"Are you sure about this? One mistake and we could have five deaths on our heads," she responded feeling slightly worried about how calm he seemed.

"Relax. I've been doing this for years. If you follow my lead and take them down silently and quickly from the shadows, we'll be fine," he stated with a confident smile before dropping down behind one and pinching his nose while covering his mouth until he passed out. "See? Just like that," he informed.

"... Alright," she said reluctantly before swiftly making her way behind a thug and covering his mouth with a gloved hand and kicking him in the back of the leg to bring him to his knees before applying a sleeper hold to knock him out.

After a few minutes, Stargirl took out the last thug simply by hitting him in the back of his head with her staff. She and Stray then dragged each thug into a pile in the middle of the bank before letting the authorities take over.

"Thanks for the help back there. Told ya it was gonna be easy though," Tim said as he and Courtney walked out of Waller's office.

"You're welcome..," she said a bit slowly.

Tim raised an eyebrow as he looked at her and wondered if maybe he should pry and try to find out if she was bothered about something. He got his answer though when she turned and grabbed the sides of his face and pulled him into a firm kiss before pulling away blushing and running off.

"Odd, and yet... Interesting. So it's not all bad here," he muttered to himself before making his way to his newly assigned quarters to think about what had just transpired.


	4. Merely an Update

**Working on the next chapter while trying to figure out how to drag other characters into the story. If anyone has any suggestions or ideas, leave your thought in a review or ask for an e-mail address and we can trade creative ideas. Thanks**


	5. Closed Meetings

**Obviously I don't own Tim, Courtney, Selina, or anyone/anything from DC Comics, so while I'm crying, be sure to read this and leave a review. Thanks, and ideas and suggestions are always welcome :)**

**Closed Meetings ;)**

Tim sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair whilst sitting on the couch in his designated room. As far as he was concerned, women were going to be his biggest problem. He chuckled to himself with a small smirk on his face as he thought about it: Amanda Waller was well… Amanda Waller. Yet again, she was trying to force another costumed individual to cooperate with her agenda: form a team loyal to the government that would also serve as 'special defense' should the Justice League ever go rogue. He pushed that thought aside though for the moment and began to think about his other problem, Stargirl.

'Of course, I could always just chalk it up to hormones and leave it at that,' he thought to himself lazily before tilting his head back and letting out a sigh.

"Why are women the complicated ones?" He asked aloud to no one in particular.

He resigned himself to his fate for the moment as he stood up to stretch his legs. He looked over at the alarm clock on the dresser and grabbed his cap before exiting the room. There was supposed to be a meeting today, and if he were lucky, it would be a short one. He pulled the cap on as he walked down the corridor before turning and entering the conference room. He looked around at all the faces present and raised an eyebrow. Every member, at least those he could identify, was there except for one, Stargirl. He shrugged a bit before sitting down in the seat beside Selina and looked around out of boredom.

"Glad you could make it," Selina whispered to him as she leaned in his direction.

"I assume it's mandatory regardless of how you feel about it," he whispered back as he leaned closer to her as well.

Selina smirked at his response before wrapping an arm around him and letting out a soft chuckle. "Don't worry Kitten, it's only temporary," she cooed in an attempt to cheer him up. Tim simply nodded since he didn't want to get into a debate about it, especially not in front of Waller. A moment later, Stargirl walked in and looked around only to notice the only empty seat left was next to Tim. She still wasn't sure how she felt about it, but she had to admit that he wasn't some pretty-boy who thought he was all that, so she guessed he wasn't too bad. With that, Waller stood up and began the meeting, which was a minute behind schedule.

"Not that we're all here, I think it's time we got down to business," she began as she opened up a PowerPoint loaded with information. "Over the last few months, reports from various countries have stated that various criminal organizations and corrupt politicians have been hampering their development in economic and military status."

"I assume you want us to take care of this one country at a time then, but wouldn't that reduce the level of help we can provide to our own country?" Asked Hawkman.

"I had originally planned for that, but I believe there is a better idea available," she stated calmly and with an air that was usually held by an overconfident leader.

"You want to reform your old Suicide Squad," Tim said with a smirk on his face. "That's brilliant, but don't most of them hate you, ya know, like any sensible person would?"

Waller chuckled softly at his question and stared directly at him, a move he returned in full but with a noticeable glare. He was a clever young man, but such was expected from a protégé of Batman. She took a moment before organizing some papers into a folder before sliding the folder down to Tim.

"Yes Mr. Drake, most, if not all of the members hate me, but that's the nature of the business; therefore, I won't be personally recruiting all of them, but you've been selected to bring in a new member for me… Slade Wilson," she informed smugly.

At that revelation, Selina, as well as everyone else, looked at Amanda incredulously while Tim stared daggers at her. After a moment of silence, everyone's attention was brought back to Tim who was beginning a slow-clap with a noticeable smirk on his face. He was expecting to be called again on some strange assignment, but this one took the cake.

"Brilliant Amanda, simply brilliant. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you wanted me dead, but okay," he said with short burst of laughter.

Everyone looked at him in confusion before Courtney voiced her concerns.

"Are you sure about this Tim? You can't be serious Ms. Waller. He could seriously be killed," she exclaimed as she looked back and forth between the two.

"I'm with the blonde," Selina informed angrily. "I have every bit of faith in my son's skills, but I will not allow you to endanger him like he's some expendable grunt."

Tim blinked in surprise as he looked at Selina before frowning slightly. 'Sel… Mom," he thought to himself before gently placing a hand on her shoulder. He took a deep breath and remembered that he was here for her. If he had to go on his own suicidal mission to help her, he would. Waller watched the two before shaking her head.

"Of course I wouldn't ask him undertake such a task. He's far too valuable," she informed. "I just want him to hand over any information on Batman he may have that I don't."

Tim's eyes went wide this time in slight surprise and confusion. Was she… No way. He couldn't. He wouldn't. She was probably going to convince him on why he should anyway. If she was serious, he was beginning to wish she had the Deathstroke mission lined up for him instead. He looked at the folder in front of him and opened it up slowly and carefully, almost as if he was diffusing a bomb. He looked through the content inside and frowned at what he saw. The first thing was a split photo of Bruce Wayne and Batman. 'So she knows. Alright then,' he thought to himself uncomfortably. She had old clippings of the Wayne murder in Crime Alley, sheets detailing his attributes and such, information on his equipment, and even information on the others. Dick and Babs, even information on himself and Jason. She wasn't stupid. She had details on everyone, and he made a mental note to either make himself hard copies or at least get pictures when he could. Even though he wasn't a member, or at least an immediate member of the Batfamily, he felt that he should get this to Bruce. After a few moments, he put the papers back into the order Waller had them and closed the folder before sliding it back towards Waller. He stared at her with a blank expression before standing up and walking out without saying a word.

"Where do you think you're going? This meeting isn't over," Amanda Waller called out after him.

After battling with her thoughts and emotions, Courtney stood up and nodded towards Amanda before chasing after Tim. Waller watched her leave with a smirk and knew that there was something going on there, but her thoughts were delayed when Selina called out to her.

"I don't know what you've got on them, or why you put him in that position since he obviously isn't loyal to you, so why do it?"

"That's classified," the dark-skinned woman relied curtly.

"Then I'm done for the day. I have a son to comfort," Selina responded with a hint of anger before leaving in search of Tim.

Tim leaned against the wall across the hall from his room with his left hand lightly pressed against the wall and his right palm supporting his forehead. He was in a difficult situation now. If Waller was expecting this information, which she obviously was, she wasn't going to wait long. He pushed himself off the wall and began to walk in a circle in front of his door muttering about Waller, Hell, and a few other obscenities.

"Tim? You okay?" Courtney asked as she approached him.

He shot her an uneasy look before sighing and shrugging.

"Do I look alright? I think I need some alone time," he replied.

Courtney shook her head an opened the door to his room and motioned for him to follow her. Obviously confused, the young man raised an eyebrow, but followed her in nonetheless and sat beside her on his bed.

"You should all know that I won't be giving anything else out. She's got more than enough in her possession," he stated.

"I guess, but she's the only one that knows what she's got, aside from you now I suppose," she informed as she gently took her hand in his.

"What… What are you doing?" He asked as he looked at her slightly confused.

She bit her bottom lip and stared at him before shrugging a bit. "I uh… You ever try dating once you became a hero, or in your case a thief?"

"A few times, but I was a different person then. Why?" He asked as he rested his free hand on her lap.

"You're cute," she blurted out quickly as she leaned in a bit.

He smirked as he brought his hand up to her cheek. "I think I've got an affinity for tough beautiful blondes," he whispered before closing the distance between their faces and pressing his lips against hers. This is how Selina found them, and instead of disturbing their tender moment, she smirked and decided she could talk to him later.

"Not bad Kitten," she muttered to herself before returning to her own room next to his with a small smile on her face.


	6. Revelations Pt 1

**Still don't own a thing from DC, but the show must go on.**

Amanda Waller was sitting in her office, but unbeknownst to anyone, she was on the phone with the president of the United States. After viewing some of the news reports recently, she, along with the rest of the world, was now fully aware that the mythical city of Atlantis was no longer a myth. While she had a legitimate reason for not letting the JLA lend a hand, she was a little upset that Aquaman had accepted membership into the JLI. She had Col. Trevor get Cyborg to call up the league to deal with this since she didn't want to alert the league to the existance of the JLA just yet. The president, however, felt that America's league's presence would have helped cut down on property damage.

"Mister President' I understand your feelings, but I assure you that keeping the JLA hidden still is for the best. No need to create an additional and unnecessary conflict," she informed in a calm and controlled manner. In truth though, she just didn't want to deal with the other league's reaction, especially Batman's, until she felt that she had enough leverage to use against them.

The president sighed on his end of the line before speaking. "Amanda, I know you want to do what you think is best for the world, but if the Justice League of America is what's best, then the world needs to be made aware sooner rather than later. I have to go now. Another meeting with the cabinet and Congress about the Atlantian thing," he informed somewhat tiredly before hanging up.

Amanda hung up as well with a frown growing on her face. If that was an ultimatum, which she assumed it was, then she was going to have to make a few gutsy calls during the next few days.

Tim was tossing and turning in his sleep as memories of his father's murder plagued his dreams. He knew they would pop up again, but for whatever reason, he still couldn't get rid of the horrible feelings that came with them. He was riding with Batman in the Batmobile as the call came through from Jack Drake, and even though he was surprised, before Batman could say anything, Tim had opened the communication channel. Jack conveyed how proud he was of Tim and how he was doing more with his life then most parents could have hoped from their children, but he also mentioned that Tim shouldn't hold himself responsible for anything that happens to him, and the gunshot that rang out startled him.

"NOOOO!" He cried out as he shot up from his prone position.

'Again.. Wonderful,' he thought to himself tiredly as he slowly got up and walked into the bathroom. His hands, he noticed after bringing his focus back to reality, were shaking slightly, and he assumed that his father's death would always haunt him. He turned the nob on the sink and let the water run for a quick second before cupping his hands under the falling stream and splashing his face a few times. He then turned the water off and dried his face off while he thought about his nightmare again. He still wasn't sure why Harkness would go after his father, but it didn't matter now since they were both dead. Knowing that it was too late to try and go back to sleep, he decided that he'd go to the training area and see what he could do. It was never his first idea, but hey, he had to vent somehow and he didn't want to talk to anyone here about it... Aside from maybe Selina, but he didn't want to wake her up.

He was about to go change when he noticed another presence in his room and turned to see who it was. "Mom?"

Standing, or rather leaning against the door frame stood one Selina Kyle, who simply smiled and nodded at him. She pushed herself off the frame and walked over to him with her smile being replaced by a concerned look. "What's wrong Tim?" She asked as she gently placed her hands on his shoulders. She was giving him a chance to open up about his nightmares, but since he was trained by the bat, she knew she would most likely have to force it.

"It's nothing," he blurted out quickly in response. He mentally chastited himself for that, since even he knew that his response was one that denied truth.

His response made her frown slightly, but she knew it was probably a habit in the Batfamily. "Tim.. Kitten, you're not alone, nor are you a bird/bat anymore. If something's bothering you, talk to me. Nightmares getting to you again?"

To say he was surprised would be a bit of an understatement. He stared at her for a moment with his eyes widened before he looked away. "Don't be so surprised," she began with a hearty chuckle, "But I don't think Stargirl would like to see you in this kind of state either."

While he wasn't as surprised about her knowing about his new relationship with Stargirl, the fact that she was able to call him out and see past his emotional barriers twice in a single moment was certainly impressive to him. Sure he knew she was clever, but she was starting to look like a master detective in her own rights. Feeling like he couldn't avoid this conversation, he motioned for her to join him on the edge of his bed. As they sat down, Selina noticed a small, but ever-present smirk on her kitten's face.

"My dad was killed when I was Robin by Captain Boomerang, but the why portion of that mystery still eludes me. It's not like I made it known that Tim Drake was Robin, but... I don't even know. There was no case, because even if he was hired by someone, it didn't matter since the hired gun was killed too... I guess I feel that Robin got my dad killed, and for the first time, my feelings about being Batman's partner kind of waned," he admitted as he gently rested his head on her shoulder.

Selina couldn't but smile seeing him open up. Even though it was a sad story, she was glad to see him open up more to her. It showed that he was making progress in his transition from being a bat to a cat. "It wasn't your fault Tim. The world is full of 'what ifs' but that doesn't make every bad thing that happens your fault. You should take comfort in the fact that he was proud of you though. You're a wonderful young man if I do say so myself," she told him as she wrapped her arms around him in a loving embrace. Tim couldn't help but smile as he returned the gesture.

"Now about your relationship with Courtney," she began as a smirk made its way onto her lips as she noticed his facial expression.

Tim groaned as he buried his face into her shoulder for a moment. "Do we have to discuss this now?" He asked, even though he already knew the answer to that.

"Yes," she responded firmly.

It was at that moment when Tim wanted to crawl away and hide from the world. "So... Does this mean you're going to give me a five hour lecture and the sex talk?"

"No... But I will tell you not to mess with the heart of a woman... And to wear protection if you two go the distance," she informed him with a stern look on her face. He nodded in understanding as he looked back at her with a small smile.

"Well this was nice, but try to get some rest Tim. You're not being held up to Batman's standards, at least not by me. You're allowed to take it easy when the chance arises," she told him in almost a whisper before getting up and leaving to return to her room.

...

Once the morning came, the Justice League of America was yet again in the conference room. Hawkman, Martian Manhunter, and Col. Trevor were alert and wide awake, Green Arrow, Catwoman, and Courtney were still a bit sleepy but were still aware that this meeting was important so they forced themselves up. Waller looked around and raised an eyebrow before turning towards Selina and Courtney who simply shrugged. Selina just hoped that he wasn't beating himself up still for things he had no control over.

With a sigh, Amanda stood up to comence the meeting.

"Regardless of how we may feel about this, the president thinks that if we are to have any chance of success, that the Justice League of America needs to make its presence known shortly," she told them in a firm voice.

Unbeknownst to anyone, Tim was leaning against the wall as he listened in on the the meeting. He knew that at some point that they were going to have to come out as a group, but he wasn't interested in being labeled as part of a group. He wanted or rather needed to remain anonymous and not associated with anything so that he could maintain his sanity. He wasn't exactly a social person, and being thrust into the spotlight as a member of a team that would eventually come into conflict with the original Justice League didn't sit well with him.

Deciding that he couldn't sit and wait for Waller to tell him he had been drafted, he pushed off the wall and entered the conference room with a hardened expression.

"While the team may...," Waller said before stopping and staring at Tim. "You're late," she informed him in a collected manner.

"I was thinking," he responded as he looked directly at her.

"Regardless, as a member of the JLA-,"

"No! I am not a member of YOUR team, nor will I be cohersed into joining. I thought we discussed this," he said as more of a statement then a question.

"Now hold on," came the voice of Steve Trevor. "I know you may not agree with the notion of a JLA, but you have to admit that the notion is necessary. The Justice League may be on the side of the angels, but there does need to be something to keep them in check just in case," he informed, trying to get Tim to understand.

"Trust me, Batman has it covered," he stated tiredly.

"I know Batman isn't crazy enough not to analyze their strengths and weaknesses, but we don't have him or his cooperation, so this is the next best thing. Originally I was going to have Green Arrow be Batman's opposite, but then Catwoman came along," Amanda informed with a smirk, "but then she brought you along too. Your knowledge and experience make you too good a soldier to pass up on. Whether you like it or not, your on this team, and you will be sharing field leadership duties with Col. Trever," she told everyone with a note of finality while returning Tim's hard stare.

After a moment of silence, Hawkman, Arrow, Trevor, Martian Manhunter, and Stargirl nodded, albeit Stargirl and Trevor's were slightly hesitated. Catwoman looked over at her stray for a moment before sighing a bit and nodding reluctantly. "Fine," she mumbled as she thought about having some serious words with Amanda Waller later.

After Catwoman's response, Amanda, as well as everyone else turned to Tim to hear his response. Tim simply stared at Waller with a frown on his face as his hands balled into fists. After a moment of uncomfortable silence and Tim having thrown a quick glance at Selina who looked torn, Tim turned around and walked out the door without saying a word. He was going to need some lengthy time alone so that he could try to figure out where his loyalties lied. Of course he was here for Selina, that was the only reason he was here in the first place. He was- building up a relationship with Stargirl, even though they had yet to go on an actual date and talk things out.

'Whatever,' he thought to himself somewhat angrily.

Back in the conference room, Courtney and Selina both stood up, obviously concerned about Tim, but paused for a moment as they stared at each other.

Selina couldn't help but smirk before nodding a bit at the younger girl. "Guess we'll both go see how he is," she said as she and Courtney got up and went after Tim.

After looking around for him, they found him headed towards the hanger with a neutral expression on his face.

"Going somewhere?" Courtney asked as she and Selina caught up to him.

"... Home," he said before walking into the Javalin to head back to Gotham.

Unsure of what to do, Selina chuckled as she followed him in, followed by Courtney who was a bit curious, but also unsure as to what would happen and whether or not it was a good idea.

...

"Amanda," came the voices of Martian Manhunter and Col. Trevor. "We need to talk."

**So I felt like I made Tim a bit OC before I remembered that this is an AU. So as long as I don't make him a deity, all should be good. **

**Who knows, we might have a few special appearances in the next chapter ;). More action and adventure to follow in the next few chapters :D**

**Anyways, please be sure to read, rate, review, and enjoy. :)**

**Next chapter: Return to Gotham.**


	7. Words to Live By

Tim sat at the wheel of the Javalin as he focused on Waller and her command decision, as well as how he planned to deal with knowing that she had information on everyone in the Batfamily. Selina sat in the seat next to his and kept glancing over at him every few minutes. Courtney, who sat behind Selina, glanced over at him occasionally as well. They were both concerned because of his silence. While Selina had experienced this before, she was sure that this was on par with the night she brought him into their now Catfamily. He was just beginning to come out of his shell those days, but now that she thought about it, this may have actually been worse. She sighed under her breath as she turned to face him.

"Tim? You can talk to us," she told him in an attempt to at least get him to talk.

"I- We care," Courtney added with some uncertainty since she wasn't sure what to say.

Tim, after another moment of silence, let out an audible breath as he turned to face his companions with a thoughtful expression on his face. He was busy trying to decide on how he would alert Batman to Waller's plans without letting her know.

"Can we talk about this once we're in Gotham Selina..? Alone," he asked as he looked solely at her.

Selina's eyes widened in surprise not at his question, but at the fact that he wanted it to be a one on one with her. She was expecting, and kind of hoping, that he would open up to their companion beside her. Courtney was just as shocked, but figured that since she wasn't as involved in this, that she probably wouldn't have been the best one to unload his worries on. Still, the fact that he was keeping her in the dark kind of hurt a bit, but she wouldn't let it show.

"Of course," Selina said as she gave Tim a look that made him aware of her thoughts on his refusal to talk to Courtney.

Tim shrugged a bit as he nervously rubbed his right arm a bit. It wasn't that he didn't trust her, but she didn't know what people from Gotham were like, and by people from Gotham, he was thinking of Bruce.

There was an awkward silence that seemed to last for an eternity before Tim turned back to the controls of the vehicle. Upon seeing that he wasn't going to speak any further on the matter at the present moment, Selina turned her seat back to its original position while glancing over at Tim for a moment while Courtney simply stared out the window.

...

Back at the JLA headquarters, Amanda Waller sat in her office chair with a disapproving look aimed at Steve Trevor and Martian Manhunter. After what could be called a disasterous meeting, both felt the need to voice their concerns about Waller's decision to include Stray in the Justice League of America and his position as co-leader in the field.

"I'm serious Waller," came the voice of Steve Trevor, "the kid-" he continued on before being cut off by J'onn.

"Young man," Martian Manhunter informed in a neutral tone.

Col Trevor sighed under his breath before continuing. "Sorry. The young man doesn't need to be involved with the JLA in the field. He's not stupid. He'll figure some way to get out of it and you know it," he told her with a stern expression on his face. "He's not capable of that kind of responsibilty."

It was there that Martian Manhunter decided to voice his opinion on the matter.

"I disagree Col Trevor. As a protege of Batman and by possessing the intelligence and physical attributes that he does, I believe he could easily make a capable solo field leader, but I feel that his mind and heart are not into it. Confusion and anger flowed off of him in waves," the Martian informed as he looked back and forth between the two of them. "We can not force him to do something that he would not do on his own. That never ends well."

Waller sat there with a neutral look on her face as she listened to both men express concern over her decision. "Whether you two like it or not, his kind of talent is too valuable to let go of, but don't worry; if all goes well, his heart shouldn't be a problem," she informed with a smirk.

Although no one said anything aloud, the image of Stargirl following after Stray when he stormed out of the meeting was replaying in their minds. Feeling like they weren't going to convince Waller to alter her plans for the team or the young man, J'onn and Steve turned and left Waller alone and went off in their own directions.

'He will work for the JLA willingly. He just needs the right push,' she thought to herself as she pulled out her files on the Batfamily before her eyes settled on one member in particular.

...

Back in Gotham, Tim, Courtney, and Selina made their way up into Tim's new penthouse after having hopped out of the Javalin and directing it to a remote hanger used for government agents or whatever. Tim didn't really know what it was for really, but he really couldn't bring himself to care at the moment. He opened the sliding glass door on the balcony before gesturing for his female companions to enter before him. Selina stepped in and marveled at how a couple hundred grand could allow one to live in a cozy home such as this. Courtney was also in awe at the luxury that surrounded her and wondered just what else Tim had in his back pocket.

"So, was this a gift from someone, or was it a gift from yourself to yourself?" Selina asked as she plopped down on the beige couch in front of the large plasma screen television.

"Call it me using some of the Drake-Wayne fortune for myself to keep my account locked under my name," he informed as he sat beside her on the center piece of the couch.

Courtney sat down beside Tim and gently bit her bottom lip as she looked around once more for a brief moment.

'Oh yeah, he's definitely not some spoiled good-looking rich kid,' she thought as she stared at him.

It was odd, at least in her opinion. He could have pretty much anything he wanted and not lift more than a finger to get it, but he still went out and beat up crooks and pilfered from other rich people to give back to the less fortunate. It was kind of... Inspiring in a way. Her train of thought was interrupted though when Selina cleared her voice and spoke out concerning their brief talk on the Javalin.

"Now about your loyalty woes," Selina said with a slightly raised eyebrow as she locked eyes with Tim.

He was about to say something when it clicked. She was trying to get him to open up in the presence of everyone in hopes that Courtney would be able to comfort him somehow. Tim let out a quiet sigh before turning to Courtney and wrapping his arms around her in a gentle embrace.

"I'm sorry Courtney... It's nothing personal, but I'm still trying to figure out how to deal with being in this crazy situation," he told her in a whisper as he gently ran his fingers through her hair.

He hoped that she would understand and allow him and Selina a moment to converse about this. While he dind't want to keep Selina from finding out whoever it was that was using her name, he also didn't want to roll over for Amanda Waller. He needed some kind of reassurance that he wasn't crazy for trying to get out of his situation. He was so lost in his thoughts that he failed to realize that Courtney had gently been tapping his thigh a bit in order to get his attention.

"Sorry," he muttered as he released her from the embrace.

She simply shook her head before standing up and looking between him and Selina before pressing a soft kiss onto his cheek and moving into the bedroom next to his to give them their privacy. Selina watched the scene before her and couldn't help but smile at the affection shown by both. Even though Courtney didn't see it, Selina caught the small smile that found it's way onto Tim's face.

"Why couldn't she be involved Tim? She's already involved as it is, what harm could taking part in this talk do?" Selina asked as she gave him a look that clearly said 'try to prove me wrong.'

"I just don't want Waller to pressure her for information like she will with me," he responded evenly. "She may be a part of this, but that's only because she's a part of this Justice League of America. Nothing too involving about that."

"So are we Tim," Selina said before instantly wishing she could take it back when she noticed his expression change from neutral to annoyed and angry.

"I thought you said we would only be there temporarily!? Being part of a team designed to combat the original league if necessary seems like a long-term relationship if you ask me," he offered as he began to use one of the calming techniques he had learned from Bruce.

"Tim... It's complicated. You know that," she told him in a calm manner as she reached out to take his hands in hers.

"Yeah. I do," he said bitterly as he gently pulled his hands away from hers before standing up. "I need som air," he told her as he made his way to his room and opened up the closet before placing his right hand on the hidden panel behind his clothes and pulling out his suit.

'Nice night for a run,' he thought to himself as he began to change into his leather catsuit. After checking his equipment to make sure it was in good working order, he made his way onto the balcony outside his bedroom before taking off on the rooftops of Gotham.

...

Selina sighed to herself as she stood up. While she knew it wouldn't be easy to get to Tim to come out of his shell, the fact that he had made progress in less than a month of becoming like a son to her gave her hope that he would do so in a rather quick period of time.

'Guess I should've seen this coming though,' she mused to herself as she walked towards Courtney's room before stopping in front of it and knocking gently on the door.

"Mind if I come in?" She asked.

It took a moment, but when the door opened, Selina was greeted by the sight of Courtney who looked as confused as ever, but also a bit hurt.

"A little girl talk should fix this right up," Selina said with a smirk as she entered the room.

...

Tim definitely wasn't in a taking mood tonight. Thievery required a calm collected mindset that he just didin't have at the moment, so he instead went out on a patrol run while letting the breeze and the familiarity of his actions dictate his course. As he ran, flipped, and generally glided across the skyline of Gotham; lithe as always, he found himself smiling a little. It had been so long since he just let himself move without thinking that the sudden return to such actions was a much welcomed experience.

'I should've just done this the moment I got back,' he thought to himself with an internal chuckle.

He continued to run and flip across Gotham's rooftops before the sound of glass being shattered caught his attention.

'Yeah it's about time something happened. This night was almost too quiet,' he mused to himself before turning and making his way towards the source of the disturbance.

Oncehe made his way to the area, he crouched down on the ledge of the roof he was standing on and observed the situation while simultaniously plotting his takedowns. There were 4 men surrounding an older man who was shielding what Tim assumed were his wife and daughter. One of the men held a crowbar in his hand and repeatedly tapped it against the palm of his hand as they formed an arc around their prey. Tim had to shake his head on this one. Gotham criminals were unlike any others since they had no remorse for their intended victims. With a small smirk forming on his face, he flipped off the edge of the roof and whistled to get everyones' attention before his boots connected with the head of the man onthe left of the one with a crowbar as he rolled into a crouched position in front of the family. The crack the man's head made with the ground signified that he was unconscious which meant that Stray now only had 3 more men to deal with.

The three men who remained conscious were obviously caught off guard by Stray's arrival, but even after seeing their friend go down in an instance, they weren't worried at all.

"What the hell are you supposed to be?" Asked the man on Tim's left with a low chuckle.

"Who cares," the man with the crowbar began. "Let's skin this dumbass alive."

"Wait a minute, don't he look like Catwoman?" Asked the man on Tim's right.

"So?" Asked the man farthest to the left.

"So what if this is her son with the bat or something?" The man on the right asked.

"No way. You seen the kids that freak runs with. This punk ain't one of 'em," the man with the crowbar stated confidently, only to sweat a little bit from doubt when he saw Tim's small but present smirk.

"Mikey's right. Every kid that runs with the bat wears a symbol. No symbol, no bat to protect him," the man on the left stated with a evil smirk on his face.

While the three men were going back and forth about whether or not to take him on, Tim was studying each of them now that he had a good frontal close-up view. The man with the crowbar would be his only threat if any of them were a threat. They all seemed somewhat out of shape and he couldn't help but chuckle. Gotham criminals never learned. Even with 7 or 8 vigilantes patrolling the city, these idiots kept coming back for more.

"Should have at least thrown a shot when you had a chance," Stray said before he let out a brief snarl as he leapt forward and took hold of the crowbar in the man's hands in front of him, brought his right foot up and kicked him in the groin, then pushed him forward and brought the crowbar down on his head with some good amount of strength and knocking him unconscious.

Immediately after his first target had gone down, the man to his right lunged at Stray, so with the crowbar still in his hand, he swung his arm around and connected with the man's arm since he brought a weak guard up to keep himself from winding up like his partner. The man behind Stray managed to tightly wrap his arms around him and lift his feet off the ground for a moment, but once the man's partner approached from up front, Stray quickly curled his legs up before thrusting them out and knocking the man in front down before tilting his head forward and snapping it back against his holder's nose. The sound of a nose breaking, the muttering of curses, and the eventual release of him told Tim that he was nearly done with his prey. He turned around and kneed the man in the gut before throwing a spinning kick at the thug approaching from behind before returning to the one who was still hunched over and putting him in a hammer lock before slamming his head against the wall and letting him slump to the ground unconscious with a smirk. The remaining punk threw a punch that Stray saw coming, so he grabbed the man's arm, kicked him against the wall and jumped up as he launched his knee into the man's jaw, effectively knocking him out.

"Are you three okay?" He asked as he turned to the trio who surprisingly hadn't moved.

The woman and the young girl simply nodded their heads, but the elderly man approched Tim with a thoughtful expression on his face.

"I know; these men were bad and they need to serve time for their crimes, but you let that drag on did you not?" He asked as he stared neutrally at the young leather-clad man in front of him.

"I... Kind of... But... Forget it," he muttered as he turned to return to his patrol route before a hand on his bicep stopped him.

"You are troubled young man. I can see it in your eyes and the way you carry yourself. You are nothing like others your age, so at least take my words into advisement: sometimes life is like a dark tunnel, you can't always see the light at the end of the tunnel, but if you just keep moving, you will come to a better place," he said with a small smile on his face.

Tim just stood there and thought about it as the man spoke.

"Who are you?" the young thief/crime-fighter asked after a moment of silence.

"Just an old man who wanted to say thank you for saving his and his family's lives," he told the young man with a hearty chuckle. "You may be a hero, but you are still human. Do not forget to take the time to enjoy yourself as well," he informed with a brief nod before ushering his family out of the alley so they could go home.

"... Thank you," Tim said before scaling the wall to his right and hopping onto the roof.

The old man simply smiled as he took one last look up at the young man before heading home with his family. Once Stray made it onto the roof, he was startled when he noticed Stargirl and Catwoman waiting for him, each eyeing him with uncertainty. Selina was about to speak, but she stopped when Tim raised up a hand.

"I know," he breathed out with sigh before walking over to Stargirl and placing his hands on her shoulders. "And I'm... Sorry," he uttered.

To most people, it would have seemed like a fake apology, but Selina and Courtney knew better. Having spent so much time under Batman's tutelege, Tim was used to just accepting his mistakes and moving on without ever openly acknowledging them, but the fact that he was now made Selina smile to herself. Her not-so-little Stray was coming out of his shell and becoming the man she kind of hoped Batman would one day become.

"You better be," Stargirl told him with a smirk before moving his hands down to her waist and then wrapping her arms around his neck.

Tim couldn't help but smirk too as he looped his arms around her waist while gently resting his forehead on hers. Courtney stared into his shiny blue orbs and gently bit her bottom lip, but before they could even inch their faces closer to attempt a lip-lock, Selina cleared her throat to claim their attention.

"As much as I would love to let you two enjoy yourselves, the night is still young, so how about we make good use of our time?" She asked with a smirk.

Courtney and Tim looked at each other, then back at Selina before simply nodding and letting each other go, but not before Tim pressed a soft kiss onto her cheek before taking off across the skyline of Gotham, followed by his two comrades.

**I felt like this would be a good place to stop for this chapter. I must say (yes I really must say it) that I was quite pleased with how this chapter turned out. **

**If you must know, the older man's words were quoted from a show on Nickeloden. Might share my plan for the next chapter if someone can tell me what show or the name of the character... Or not as the case may be. Anyway, please leave likes, reviews, ratings, and constructive criticism if you have any to offer and I'll see you next time. **


	8. Update & Return

**I still live and I do remember this story, but for a while work and school have been keeping me fairly busy. Not much of an excuse I know, but I am beginning to work on the story again. I have a few ideas on how I'd like to introduce the rest of the Batfamily, the Outlaws, the Titans, and more. **

**For the Outlaws, you'll have to wait and see how they come in since I'm set on their introduction, but as for some like the Teen Titans, I'm trying to decide.**

**Teen Titans' ideas**

**1\. Have Tim and Courtney form them secretly as a side measure just in case Waller's JLA doesn't live up to the hype. I'm thinking that they would kind of be like the team from the Young Justice television series (a great series by the way that should NEVER HAVE BEEN CANCELLED)**

**2\. Have Titans form on their own and simply have Tim and Courtney join shortly afterwards (again in secret without Waller knowing)**

**3\. Either have them form the team with Amanda's candidates, or have them join under her orders in order to keep tabs on them and potentially sway them if necessary and possible.**

**The Justice League will be introduced shortly within the next few chapters. Same for the members of the Batfamily.**

**My biggest stump is the Justice League Dark. In all honesty, my knowledge on them is limited, seeing as I only know the bare minimum about Zatanna and Deadman, so I may have to kind of implement my own ideas as I go along. **

**Anyway, that's it for now. more to come as you just read, and if anyone has any ideas/suggestions, feel free to let me know. 900 views is a nice start for me, working on making the chapters longer in length too. So with all that being said... Ciao. ^-^**


	9. Trouble Brewing

"We need to ensure that this plan goes off without a hitch," came Amanda Waller's stern voice.

"But what if one of them suspects something? This is the Bat we're dealing with after all," Came the voice of a nervous agent.

"If you people do your jobs right, you won't have to worry about anything," Amanda replied before cutting the line and leaving her agents to their mission.

The man on the other end of the line hung up the phone and let out an exasperated sigh before turning his head to face his cohorts. Eight of Waller's "people" had selected to undertake a mission that would get Stray to cooperate with Amanda's idea of working with the Justice League of America. Two teams, four members each, and three targets. Stray and Batman were obvious, but the group flying towards a remote island were unsure about their target since none of them had ever heard of this Red Hood. What was equally confusing was that there was only two teams, but three targets. How could there be three targets and only two teams? The answer was simply, Waller, through one of her female workers, was going to try and seduce the young man. This wasn't her first choice, but after seeing how flirtation was a part of his and Catwoman's game, it was something she had some measure of faith in. Sure the fact that he and Stargirl had some sort of relationship growing, she felt that the young love could hinder their performance in the field, especially if one of them got hurt, or lord help her, if they went through one of those teenage break-ups. She was looking at the bigger picture, and whether anyone liked it or not, the bigger picture was all that mattered.

"Well?" Came the voice of the man sitting in the pilot's seat.

His co-worker shook his head a bit before leaning back in his seat a bit.

"We're still on the clock until we finish this," he said after a moment of silence.

"Has anyone actually read over the information Miss Waller has on these people?"

Came the voice of the female sitting in the co-pilot's seat.

"No. Why?" Asked the man sitting behind her.

"There's a.. Tamranen.. Th- there's an alien with the two males. She's supposed to be strong, fast, have flight and energy projection powers. What if she sees us? What's to stop her from tearing us apart?" She asked with a hint of worry in her voice.

"Well, there's always Miss Waller's glare," the man beside her said jokingly.

At that, everyone shared a brief chuckle before the plane began its descent. Everyone got ready to deliver the "message" to this Red Hood from Batman, but there was still worry on their minds.

"Beta team moving in," the female stated after activating the communication function on her watch.

With that, they made their way casually off the plane and over to a small house with a moderately sized spaceship not far from it.

"Told you so," the female whispered to the others.

"Shut up and move," came the leader's clipped response.

They didn't have to interact with the three occupants of this island at all. All they needed to do was make sure that this Red Hood got his message and they could leave. A brief scan of the area informed them that no one was currently nearby, and they didn't bother to over at the beach or the bit of forest area they came through. It was a simply delivery. Two members would go to drop off the message, while the other two kept a lookout. The female grabbed her partner's wrist and jogged quickly over to the hut. They looked around carefully before slipping into the house, dropping off the batarang and making a run for it back to their partners.

"Is it set?" Their team leader asked as he continued to look around somewhat impatiently.

"Yes yes. Can we go now?" Came the hurried question from the male who helped with the delivery.

"This was too easy, but yes. Yes we can," the leader informed as he started to make the walk back to the plane.

"Thank God," the female said with a sigh of relief.

"You may want to hold off on thanking him until you explain to me why you're here," came a mysterious voice from the forest area.

Immediately, each member drew their gun and began waving them around in a panicked state. After a moment of remaining hidden, A man with combat boots, black pants, a shirt with a bat symbol on it, a light brown jacket and a red hood stepped out of the shadows with a gun in one hand and a dagger in the other.

"Well?" He asked with a smirk hidden by his helmet.

"Who the hell are you?" Asked the man standing the left of the team's leader.

"Red Hood. Now I'll only ask one more time: why are you here?"

"To deliver a message," the female member piped up.

"From who?" He asked as he raised his gun at her.

"You'll have to see it for yourself to find out," the leader replied as he put his gun back up and continued to return to the plane.

"Fine," Jason responded bitterly as he holstered his weapons, "but if this is a trick, consider yourselves dead."

With that, the remaining members of Waller's second team followed their leader while Jason watched silently before making his way to his base of sorts.

"Copy that beta. Alpha team moving in on its location," came the response from a man standing atop a hotel in the financial district of Gotham.

This man's team was instructed to deliver a message to the Dark Knight of Gotham himself. None of them were comfortable with this assignment, and while two members did try to back out of it, the look Miss Waller sent the whole team silenced any further opinions that might have been voiced.

"Remember to get your job done right," came Amanda's slightly irritated voice.

"We will Miss Waller," came the quick reply of a female crouched down on the edge of the roof.

The young woman was one of the two who felt the urge to have their positions on this assignment handed off to someone else. She had seen Batman in action only once, but it was something that even after a year and a half, was still fresh in her mind. He was inhuman. Waller's reports said that he had trained himself to the point of near human perfection, but the young lady didn't think any human, trained or not, could move that fast and hit that hard.

"Worried about something?" The man standing behind her with his hand on his gun asked her.

"I dunno. You?" She shot back with an annoyed look.

"No. Just… Making sure I'm not caught off guard," he responded smugly as he winked at her.

"Seriously? You think you've got a chance with either of us. I'm not interested, and he's Batman," she informed with an annoyed and hushed tone.

"Big deal. He's a man in a suit. I don't see anything scary about that. Probably looks ridiculous anyway," he stated with a shrug.

"You'll learn," was all she said before looking over at the team's leader who stared out silently into the abyss.

The leader didn't seem fazed at all considering that he was the other person who wanted out of this one job. He simply stood there with his hands folded over his chest before he turned his attention to his team with a knowing look on his face.

"Shut up you idiots… He's coming," he informed calmly, even though his hands were sweating a bit and his legs were shaking ever so slightly.

With that, the other three turned their heads quickly and for a moment, they struggled to see anything out of the ordinary, but after that moment, they stared over to their left and saw him. Standing no more than a meter from them, was the Batman, Gotham's silent guardian, its Dark Knight. Immediately, the young woman took a small step back as the man with his hand tickling his gun took a moderate step forward, only for the leader to hold his arm out to stop him from advancing further.

"We're-"

"I know who you work for," came Batman's gruff voice, "but why are you here? What purpose does Amanda Waller have sending people into my city?" he asked as his eyes narrowed while his focus shifted to the man who still had his hand over his gun.

"That's just it… sir," the team's leader began to explain.

"One of Waller's "people" is already here. She wants you to know that you're not totally in control," he explained with some difficulty as his voice seemed to shrink on him with each passing second.

"She isn't scared of some nut in his pajamas. She isn't scared of anyone," informed his teammate who had removed the strap from his gun's holster.

Batman simply stood there silently and stared at the four, while the man's teammates stared at him with growing concern.

"Don't do anything stupid," came hushed voice of the female behind him.

She remembered Batman saving her life and the lives of others from wannabe terrorists last year at a parade not even six blocks from here. It was an amazing display in her opinion, and she often found herself questioning whether or not she was working for the right person. Then she met one of his protégés. Catlad was his name, or Stray apparently. He was young, but he carried himself like a veteran and even though he was a bit more acrobatic than Batman, she could see the similarities as well. She had seen him wandering the halls of their base brooding over whatever it is that he, Batman, and other costumed individuals from Gotham brood about, and after another moment of thinking, she decided that she would make an effort to get to know the young man. It would probably offer her the insight she was looking for in regards to this field that she was engaged in, and it was helpfully that she already had a reason to talk to him, she reminded herself as she lightly tapped the folded up orders in her pocket.

"Just testing him out," came the man's reply as he grabbed the gun from its holster and began to raise it up.

Time seemed to stand still at that point for everyone as the next few seconds went by in a blur. No one even registered that Batman had lunged at the man and caught his wrist with a gloved hand before twisting it. The snap was barely heard over the cry of pain the man let out, but that was quickly silenced when Batman brought his elbow down on the man's temple, rendering him unconscious. The three still standing stared in shock before looking up at a stoic Batman before the leader spoke up to attempt to diffuse the situation.

"I-I'm sorry. He's-"

"Leave. Now. And tell Waller that anyone else she sends in her is coming at their own risk," he informed before dropping a smoke grenade to momentarily and disappearing into the shadowy night sky as quickly as he came.

"Told him not to do it," came the female's voice before lightly tapping the shoulder of her unconscious teammate with her foot.

"Let's just get the hell out of here," the third member half shouted out of fear.

"Agreed," their leader stated as he bent down to lift their teammate of the rooftop before heading back to their jet.

"You coming?" He asked as he turned to their female member who hadn't yet moved from her position.

"No," she began as she pulled out two folded pieces of paper.

"Second assignment," she informed before walking over to the door leading to the stairwell of the building and entering.

The man simply nodded and realized what was going on to some degree and decided not to dwell on it too much. He and his remaining partner set their still unconscious teammate into a set on the jet and strapped him in before doing the same themselves and heading back to D.C. Meanwhile, the young female made her way into a room where a note and a box were waiting for her on the kitchen table. Nothing special on the note; the box however, contained a casual attire and a phone, along with coordinates to Tim's penthouse, as well as a badge that would allow her to easily get past the people at the reception desk.

"Alright Maura. Nothing major, except for the fact that you could piss off one of Batman's former pupils and wind up in a hospital… Yeah, no biggie," she muttered to herself before changing into her casual clothes and leaving to head to Timothy Drake or Drake-Wayne's penthouse.

The walk there wasn't so bad. Excluding the fact that everyone usually had to look over their shoulders in Gotham, the brief journey was uneventful. Once Maura entered the building, she made her way over to the receptionists' desk and introduced herself. The man at the desk returned the greeting and quickly did a check to see whether or not Tim was at home.

"I'm sorry Miss, but Mr. Drake doesn't seem to be in right now. I can call up and double-check if you'd like," he informed as he reached over and rested his hand on the phone.

"That's fine. I can wait for him. It'll be a nice surprise," she said with a smile.

The receptionist shared a chuckle with her before responding.

"I'm sure it will."

'If you only knew,' Maura mused to herself before uttering a quick goodbye and making her way over to the elevator reserved for Tim and his contacts.

Once she stepped inside and pressed the button that would take her to the top floor, she let out a sigh of relief. It turned out that the guy working at the moment was either new to the job or unaware of Mr. Drake's screening process. Either way, she didn't have to use the badge Waller supplied her and she didn't have to worry about causing a scene. The ding of the elevator brought her mind back to reality and she stepped out after the door opened and looked around in slight awe at the place. She was sure that people like Lex Luthor and Bruce Wayne had even more extravagant domains, but this was still something that she wasn't accustomed to.

"It's amazing what a few hundred thousand dollars can do for you," she muttered to herself as she made her way over to the couch.

She wasn't sure how long she would have to wait for before someone turned up, but she was hoping that it would be a short wait. She kicked her shoes off and pulled her legs up and over to her side as she stared out the nearby window. After about fifteen minutes of waiting, the sound of the sliding glass door leading to the balcony opening up told her that someone was here so she turned her head to see who it was. Standing there after a brief pause were Stargirl, Catwoman, and Stray, each staring at her with a different expression on their face. Catwoman looked rather neutral, Stargirl looked more angry than confused, but Stray… The young man had a frown on his face and a steeled eyes as he stared down at her and Maura's immediate reaction was to look away.

"Hey you," Tim said with a grin as his expression softened a bit.

"Hey," Maura replied as she turned back to face him, understanding the game he was playing.

"You're supposed to call first. What am I supposed to tell this one?" He asked with a chuckle as he pointed to Stargirl before receiving a light punch on the shoulder from her.

"Had a key. I figured that I should use it," she responded evenly, just waiting for someone, anyone, to start hounding her with questions.

She had expected Tim to be alone. Waller never mentioned that Stargirl or Catwoman would be accompanying him.

"Old friend Kitten?" Selina asked as she looked between the two.

"We go back," he answered with a shrug.

"How far?" Courtney asked with a slight frown as she turned her body towards his.

"A year and a half," came Maura's quick response for him.

"We can talk in my room. Just don't touch the pictures," he told her as he unhooked the strap on his cap before pulling it off. "I'll be there in a minute."

She nodded with a small smile before getting up and walking into his bedroom and sitting on his bed while waiting for him.

"Are there any other surprises we're in for tonight?" Came Courtney's frustrated voice.

"Let's let him explain before jumping the gun. Kitten?" Selina said with a look on his face that Tim remembered from their talk about messing with a woman's heart.

"I have no idea who she is," he admitted after a moment of silence.

At that, both Selina and Courtney raised an eyebrow.

"She could be from the university, but then I would have had to actually given her access down at the receptionist desk, unless… Son of a bitch," he muttered to himself as it hit him.

"What is it?" Courtney asked as he seemed to just clam up for a moment.

"I'll handle it," he muttered quickly before walking quickly into his room to confront who he assumed was probably one of Amanda's agents.

"So… I guess this means that you know," she said as more of a statement than a question.

"Waller?"

Her response came in the form of a nod.

"Why?"

"She wants to be sure that you cooperate," Maura stated in a whisper.

With a sigh, Tim leaned back a bit while running his gloved fingers through his hair.

"Well, just to be nice, I'm Timothy Jackson Drake, but it's just Timothy Drake when I look in the mirror. Any you are..?"

Maura. Maura Anderson," she said with a hopeful smile.

"Scared?" He asked with a slight chuckle.

"Should I be?" She asked as she sat up a bit straighter.

"No. I'm a lot of things, but I'd never attack a woman outright without a very good reason," he informed honestly.

"What about Miss Waller?" She asked with a slight grin on her face.

"Still in the air on that one," he answered with a chuckle.

"So I assume that you're supposed to be here to "convince" me to go along with Waller's ideas. Why aren't you?" He asked out of genuine confusion.

"I… Waller. She's…-"

"It's alright. Trust me. I know," he informed.

"So… Friends?" She asked hopefully.

He bit back a bit of laughter before looking at her with a grin.

"Memory loss affecting you? We're at two years in six months," he informed with a nod.

She pushed herself off the bed and wrapped her arms around his neck in a tight hug.

"Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou," she muttered quickly.

"No problem, but… Air," he replied as he returned the hug while briefly catching his breath.

After fifteen minutes, fourteen being for small talk and the one for Tim to change, they emerged from the room laughing about something that they both agreed on. She had agreed to inform Tim of any changes in Waller's plans that he might not be aware of, and in return, she was welcomed here whenever and he would train her in self-defense.

"You two all caught up?" Selina asked as she and Courtney sat on the couch in their bedtime clothes.

"Pretty much," Tim replied as he sat down next to Courtney before leaning on her slightly and chuckling a bit.

"Good. Cause you owe me," she informed him as she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a kiss.

"They look cute don't they," Selina whispered to Maura who sat down beside her.

"It's nice," was all Maura could manage to say.

"Fair warning: don't mess this up for them, or I'll slice you apart, piece by piece."

With that, Maura paled slightly as Tim and Courtney finally pulled away from their lip lock.

"Who's up for Chinese takeout and movies?" Tim and Courtney asked in unison.

With a smile from both Maura and Selina, Tim reached over at the phone on the desk by the couch and made a few calls while Selina, Courtney, and Maura picked out the movies.

**A/N: I felt like this chapter came out a bit awkward, but that could just be me. I'm planning on expanding the universe a bit more and more in the next few chapters. I also tried to write it from the other perspective, hopefully that went well. That's all from me right now. Let me know what you think… Or not as the case may be. Ciao**


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